Inside

The Intel Core i5-14600K paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 produces a benchmark profile for Inside that is defined by extreme headroom and a GPU-bound plateau at higher settings. The data shows a puzzle platformer that is far more demanding on the graphics card than on the processor, with frame rates scaling predictably across resolutions and presets. This analysis breaks down the measured results for this specific combination, focusing on where the bottleneck lies and how to interpret the FPS figures.

CPU Role — cores, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The Intel Core i5-14600K is a 14-core, 20-thread processor based on the Raptor Lake architecture, with a base clock of 3.50 GHz and a boost clock of 5.30 GHz. It carries 24 MB of shared L3 cache and supports DDR4 and DDR5 memory. In synthetic benchmarks, this CPU sits at the 93rd percentile among all processors, with an average benchmark score of 49166. Its nearest rival, the AMD Ryzen 9 5950X, scores 49062, a delta of 0.2% — essentially a statistical tie. The Intel Core i5-14600KF scores 49367, placing it 0.4% higher, while the AMD EPYC 4345P is 0.9% ahead with a score of 49595.

For a game like Inside, which is a puzzle platformer, the CPU's raw multithreaded power is largely irrelevant to the measured frame rates. The Cinebench R23 multicore score of 32881 and the Geekbench multicore score of 15846 indicate substantial compute capability. However, the measured FPS results show that at 1080p Low, the system achieves 331.4 FPS, and at 4K Low, it still manages 152.2 FPS. These numbers suggest that even the most demanding CPU-bound scenarios in this title are easily handled by a single high-frequency core. The 5.30 GHz boost clock is the more relevant specification here, as it ensures that the game's primary thread has ample single-core throughput.

The data indicates that the CPU is not a limiting factor in this game. At 1080p, the gap between Low and Ultra settings is 173.2 FPS (from 331.4 down to 158.2), which is a function of GPU load, not CPU capability. If the processor were the bottleneck, we would expect to see a smaller spread between presets at a given resolution. Instead, the FPS scales almost linearly with the graphics workload, which points to the RTX 4060 as the decisive component. The CPU's Passmark single-thread score of 4270 and its Passmark physics score of 2473 are strong, but they do not translate into differential performance in this title because the game's logic and rendering pipeline are not computationally heavy enough to stress the 14 cores.

Settings Recommendations — which preset gives the best experience per the measured rows

Examining the measured FPS rows, the optimal preset depends on the target refresh rate and resolution, but the data clearly favors Medium settings for a balanced experience. At 1080p Medium, the system delivers 264.5 FPS, which is 161.1 FPS higher than the 103.3 FPS jump from High to Low (163.4 to 331.4). The most significant performance cliff appears when moving from Medium to High: at 1080p, the drop is 101.1 FPS (from 264.5 to 163.4), and at 1440p, the drop is 67.7 FPS (from 188.7 to 121.0). In contrast, the jump from High to Ultra is much smaller: 5.2 FPS at 1080p (from 163.4 to 158.2) and 8.2 FPS at 1440p (from 121.0 to 112.8).

This suggests that High and Ultra presets are extremely close in cost, while Medium offers a substantial FPS advantage without necessarily halving visual quality. For a 144Hz monitor at 1440p, Medium is the only preset that guarantees a frame rate above 144.0 FPS (188.7 FPS), while High falls short at 121.0 FPS. At 4K, the choice is starker: Medium delivers 122.5 FPS, which is more than enough for a 120Hz display, but High drops to 72.5 FPS and Ultra to 73.1 FPS. The data shows that Low is unnecessary for this hardware, as it produces frame rates well beyond any practical refresh rate (331.4 FPS at 1080p, 238.9 FPS at 1440p, and 152.2 FPS at 4K), indicating that the GPU is underutilized at that preset.

The best experience per the measured rows is Medium at 1440p or 4K. At 1440p Medium, the 188.7 FPS average is high enough to saturate most high-refresh displays, while at 4K Medium, the 122.5 FPS average is smooth on a 120Hz panel. High at 1440p (121.0 FPS) is also viable for 120Hz displays, but it leaves less headroom for frametime spikes. Ultra at any resolution is the least efficient, as it provides a negligible FPS gain over High (less than 10 FPS across all resolutions) while presumably adding minimal visual fidelity for a game of this genre.

Resolution Scaling — how FPS drops from 1080p to 4K and what it says about the limiting component

The measured FPS data shows a consistent pattern of scaling from 1080p to 4K, which reveals the system's bottleneck. At High settings, the average FPS drops from 163.4 at 1080p to 121.0 at 1440p (a 42.4 FPS reduction) and then to 72.5 at 4K (a further 48.5 FPS reduction). This is a total drop of 90.9 FPS (55.6%) from 1080p to 4K. At Low settings, the drop is even more severe in absolute terms: 331.4 FPS at 1080p, 238.9 FPS at 1440p, and 152.2 FPS at 4K, representing a 179.2 FPS (54.1%) reduction.

The percentage drops are remarkably consistent across presets. From 1080p to 4K, High drops by 55.6%, Medium drops by 53.7% (from 264.5 to 122.5), and Low drops by 54.1%. This uniformity is a classic signature of a GPU-bound workload. If the CPU were the limiting factor, we would expect the absolute FPS at lower resolutions (like 1080p) to plateau or show diminishing returns as the GPU becomes less stressed. Instead, the FPS continues to rise dramatically at 1080p (331.4 FPS on Low), indicating that the RTX 4060 has ample headroom and the CPU is not constraining the frame rate even at low resolutions.

The data points to the GPU as the primary limiting component at 4K. At 4K High, the system produces 72.5 FPS, which is below a 75Hz refresh rate but above 60 FPS. At 4K Ultra, the FPS is 73.1, nearly identical to High, which suggests that the game's Ultra preset is not adding a significant pixel shader load at this resolution. The 4K Low result of 152.2 FPS shows that the GPU can still output high frame rates at 4K when the pixel workload is reduced, but the preset scaling from Low to Ultra at 4K (152.2 down to 73.1) demonstrates that the rendering cost of higher-quality lighting and effects is substantial. This is a GPU bottleneck, not a CPU one.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average FPS this system achieves at 1080p?

A: The highest measured average FPS is 331.4 at 1080p with Low settings. The next highest is 264.5 at 1080p Medium, followed by 163.4 at 1080p High.

Q: Is the Intel Core i5-14600K a bottleneck for the RTX 4060 in this game?

A: No. The FPS scaling from 1080p to 4K is consistent across all presets (roughly a 54-56% drop), indicating a GPU-bound workload. The CPU's high boost clock of 5.30 GHz easily handles the game's logic, as shown by the 331.4 FPS at 1080p Low.

Q: Which settings preset offers the best balance of FPS and quality at 1440p?

A: Medium provides 188.7 FPS at 1440p, which is the only preset above 144 FPS. High drops to 121.0 FPS, and Ultra to 112.8 FPS. Medium is the best choice for high-refresh monitors.

Q: How does the RTX 4060 compare to its nearest rival in synthetic benchmarks?

A: The RTX 4060 has an average benchmark score of 23181, placing it at the 66th percentile. Its nearest rival, the AMD Radeon RX 6600M, scores 23321, which is 0.6% higher. The NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780 Ti scores 23338 (0.7% higher), and the Intel Arc B580 scores 23021 (0.7% lower).

Q: At 4K, what is the difference between High and Ultra settings?

A: The difference is minimal. At 4K High, the average FPS is 72.5, and at 4K Ultra, it is 73.1 — a difference of only 0.6 FPS. This suggests that Ultra does not add a significantly higher load on the GPU than High for this game.

Q: Can this system maintain 60 FPS at 4K with all settings maxed?

A: Yes. At 4K Ultra, the measured average FPS is 73.1, which is above the 60 FPS threshold. Even at 4K High, the average is 72.5 FPS, providing a comfortable margin above 60 FPS.

GPU Role — VRAM, clocks, and how they relate to this game's results

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 is built on the Ada Lovelace architecture using a 5 nm process from TSMC. It features 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, providing a bandwidth of 272.0 GB/s. The GPU has a base clock of 1830 MHz and a boost clock of 2460 MHz, with 3072 shading units and 24 RT cores. Its FP32 performance is 15.11 TFLOPS, and it carries a TDP of 115 W. In the benchmark database, the RTX 4060 sits at the 66th percentile among all GPUs, with an average benchmark score of 23181. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Radeon RX 6600M (score 23321, delta -0.6%) and the Intel Arc B580 (score 23021, delta 0.7%).

For Inside, the GPU is the decisive component, as evidenced by the measured FPS scaling. The 8 GB VRAM is not a concern at any of the tested resolutions, including 4K, where the game's art style and moderate texture sizes fit well within this capacity. The boost clock of 2460 MHz is crucial here; the data shows that the GPU can push frame rates well beyond 300 FPS at 1080p Low (331.4 FPS), which requires high shader throughput and efficient memory access. The 272.0 GB/s bandwidth is sufficient for this game's data transfer needs, as the FPS does not collapse at 4K — it only drops to 72.5 FPS on High, which is a reasonable figure for a 4K workload.

The RTX 4060's performance profile is consistent with its synthetic scores. Its Passmark G3D score of 19545 reflects solid DirectX 11 and 12 performance, which aligns with the game's engine requirements. The 3DMark Steel Nomad DX12 score of 2302 is low, but this is a newer, more demanding benchmark that does not directly translate to a 2016 puzzle platformer. The GPU's nearest rival in performance, the AMD Radeon RX 6600M, has a very similar average score (23321 vs. 23181), suggesting that swapping to that GPU would produce near-identical FPS in this title. The Intel Arc B580, with a score of 23021, is also a close match, just 0.7% behind.

The data confirms that the RTX 4060 is the performance limiter at higher presets, but it is a capable one. At 4K Ultra, the 73.1 FPS average shows that the GPU can handle the maximum settings without falling below 60 FPS. The consistent drop from Low to Ultra at each resolution (e.g., 331.4 to 158.2 at 1080p) highlights the GPU's workload scaling, and the fact that High and Ultra produce nearly identical FPS at 4K (72.5 vs. 73.1) indicates that the game's Ultra preset is not particularly demanding on this GPU's architecture. In summary, the RTX 4060 provides a strong experience for Inside, with the only caveat being that 4K High and Ultra are locked around 72-73 FPS, which is below 120Hz but perfectly smooth for standard 60-75Hz displays.